Athletics duo gets US chance

TWO athletes travelled to the United States this week to take up studies at Junior College while they undergo intensive athletics training.
Pacific Games gold medallists Wesley Logorava (4X100m relay) and Robson Yinambe (Decathlon) head for the city of Concordia ,Kansas, where they will take up studies at Cloud Community College.
The last month that the arrangements were confirmed was a huge relief to the pair, who had been waiting patiently since the 2015 Pacific Games for this kind of opportunity.
The athletes are part of a small group that have been training in Lae for the past 12 months with the assistance of Athletics PNG.
Sending athletes overseas is however only one strategy currently being implemented by APNG.
On the domestic front a coach development  programme has begun in earnest with the launch of an athletics coaching accreditation scheme, details of which can be found on the APNG website.
The educational programme is being complemented by mentoring of coaches with Wilson Malana from Kimbe and Allan Akia in Lae, the first to be selected for the programme. The first APNG coaching course will be offered during the 2017 PNG Games and a training camp for select group of junior male sprinters will commence next week at the National Sports Institute in Goroka.
Yinambe and Logorava follow Rellie Kaputin, Peniel Richard, Adrine Monagi, Poro Gahekave, Shirley Vunatup, Naomi Kerari, and Sharon Toako, who were able to return to the US last year under different  funding arrangements.
“A training grant from PNG Olympic Committee’s Team PNG Performance budget  together with some scholarship  support from the college has enabled us to provide this opportunity for Wesley and Robson,” Athletics PNG president Tony Green, pictured, said.
“We want to keep our key squad members fully active in the sport in between Pacific Games competitions and to continue their education and we believe this is a very good way to achieve that.
“Wesley in particular has been very committed in his training and deserves this opportunity to try to emulate the achievements of Theo Piniau, who broke the 200m national record last year.
“Robson showed at the Pacific Games that he is the sort of person who thrives in competitive environments and will rise to the occassion.
“There hasn’t been  much to stimulate him in the past 18 months but we’re confident that the competition programme he’ll have in the US will really motivate him to aim high.”